14 Jun 2016

A question about : Radiator TRVs

We have Hive installed with our new boiler.

We have been wondering about installing a TRV on each radiator, but wondered if it was worth it.

If each TRV is set, to say 19.0 as is the hive thermostat, then do we run the risk of the TRVs turning off the radiators but the boiler stays on because it thinks the temperature hasn't reached the right heat?

The hallway, which is where the hive thermostat is currently positioned, is the coldest place in the house for some reason (maybe because the radiator is also heating up to the landing, though we have double glazing and cavity wall insulation.

Best answers:

  • You just install TRVs everywhere except the room with the Hive thermostat.
    Then you fiddle with the compensator valves on the radiators so the TRV spaces get more flow and heat up first. Takes some while to get it right.
    My bathroom runs full chat, so as soon as the heating kicks in (10 mins before I get up) the bathroom is warm, then the flow diverts downstairs.
    As the TRV cuts off the radiator, the flow gets diverted through to the next radiator.
    Does have the disadvantage that the control thermostat room always heats up last. I moved mine to the living room to save money, the hall gets distinctly chilly if I keep the living room door shut all night.
    EDIT: 19 is sweltering hot if you've been saving energy for years, my main 'stat is on 18, same as the temperature at work (no point going soft at home and shivering at work) just wear a jumper.
  • 22/23 is the comfort temperature for humans
  • I used to be fine in a house around 15 degrees when I was young.
    In fact, I can't think if it's too hot.
    After turning 50, I really feel the cold. I used to wonder about my parents, who complained how the cold got into their bones. Now I keep the thermostat around 20, some times 22.
    Don't go by what other people say. Just get comfy for yourself.
  • I think my TRVs are useless to me as the numpty who installed the central heating in my rented flat routed the pipes up and through the roof instead of under the floorboards because it was less work (he didn't lag them either) Heat rises, so every time the water travels from one radiator to another (or bypasses one with the TRV fully closed and goes on to the next), I presume I'm losing some heat through the bare connecting pipes into the roofspace, instead of it percolating up through the floorboards a bit.
    (Would be more than happy to be corrected if that's wrong by the way)
    I've piled spare loft insulation over as many of the pipes as possible but I leave my TRVs fully open all the time so that at least the rooms are getting most of the benefit of the hot water running through the system rather than it heating up the loft :-/
    PS I also keep my house at 18C - I have government literature that states this is the standard comfortable temperature for the house generally, though it does also suggest 20C if you are sedentary for long periods of time. Perfectly comfortable so long as you are appropriately dressed for the season.
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